Chapter 611
Chapter 611:
“Gideon has a rule,” Eliza said, her voice tightening as she recalled Adrian’s panicked warning. “As long as I stay out of Europe, Dallas can survive the game Gideon has set in motion. By coming here, I have started the clock on my husband’s execution p>
At the far end of the promenade, the main lights in the ballroom flashed back on. The system was rebooting. They had seconds.
Eliza turned to the stunned physician. “Dr. Rhys, Dallas Koch needs you. His life is in your hands. The Royal family will offer you political asylum — anything you ask — if you help us p>
Before the doctor could answer, a voice echoed from the doorway.
“Leaving so soon, cousin p>
Gideon Sterling stood at the entrance to the promenade, flanked by two massive guards, his pale eyes gleaming with triumphant malice in the restored light.
𝖲𝖺𝗏𝖾 𝗒𝗈𝗎𝗋 𝖿𝖺𝗏𝗈𝗋𝗂𝗍𝖾 𝗇𝗈𝗏𝖾𝗅𝗌 𝗈𝗇
He had seen through the entire charade.
Gideon Sterling stepped onto the promenade, the sea wind whipping at his perfect tuxedo. He didn’t look at Eliza or the doctor. His predatory gaze was locked on Azalea.
“It seems you’ve made a new friend,” he said, his voice a silken threat. “How very American of you. Always collecting strays p>
Eliza shifted instinctively, positioning herself slightly in front of Azalea. It was a subtle, protective move — but Gideon noticed it. His eyes flickered to her for the first time, cold curiosity moving through their depths.
“And who is this one?” he mused aloud. “A servant with delusions of grandeur p>
In the Geneva safe house, the emergency back-channel finally broke through the Fortress Protocol. A single, heavily encrypted data packet from the New York servers downloaded onto Dallas’s terminal. It was not a status report. It was a security log.
CODE RED. NY FORTRESS BREACHED. MADAM KOCH FORGED IDENTITY. SHE IS IN MONACO. EXTREME DANGER.
The automated message from Captain Hayes, sent hours ago, had finally delivered its payload of ice and terror.
Dallas stared at the words. His vision tunneled. The nerve pain, the strategic maneuvering, the entire continent-spanning war — all of it vanished, replaced by a single, blinding image: Eliza, alone and hunted in his world of monsters.
“Shields!” Dallas roared, his voice cracking with a desperation he hadn’t felt in years. “Get the jet fueled. We’re going to Monaco. Now p>
“Monaco?” Shields asked, stunned. “But our intel says p>
“The intel is wrong.” Dallas slammed his fist onto the console. “The yacht wasn’t a trap for me. It was a trap for her p>
Back on the promenade, the standoff was reaching its breaking point.
Prince Edward and his guards appeared at the ballroom doorway, drawn by the confrontation.
“Sterling, what is the meaning of this?” the Prince demanded, his authority ringing hollow.
Gideon ignored him. He took a step closer to Azalea. “You have something that belongs to my family, little cousin. An artifact my traitorous uncle stole. I’ve come to collect it p>
He was speaking about the Bioweapon Protocol — but framing it as a family dispute for the benefit of every listening ear around them.
Eliza knew she had one card left to play.
“Elias,” she whispered into her comms, her lips barely moving. “Phase two. Now p>
In the Monaco apartment, Elias hit a single key.